Feed-screw support for machine-tools



A. TROSCH.

FEED SCREW SUPPORT FOR MACHINE TOOLS.

APPLICATION FILED 050.19,.1919.

1,389, 99, Patented Aug. 30, 1921.

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A. TROSCH.

FEED SCREW SUPPORT FOR MACHINE TOOLS.

APPLICATION FILED Dims. 1919.

1,389,399., v Patented Aug. 30; 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

A. TROSCH.

FEED SCREW SUPPORT FOR MACHINE TOOLS.

I APPLICATION FILED DEC-19, I919. 1,389,399.

Patented Aug. 30, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

A. TROSCH.

FEED SCREW SUPPORT FOR MACHINE TOOLS.

APPLICATION FILED DEI.19,, 191.9.

Patented Aug. 30, 1,921.

4 SHEETSSHEET 4.

fflviziz dnea? 7; asci UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED TROSCH, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR'TO ARTHUR H. INGLE, OF

' ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

FEED-SCREW SUPPORT FOR MACHINE-TOOLS.

Application filed December 19, 1919.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED Tnosorr. a citi zen of the United States, and resident of Rochester, county of Monroe, State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Feed-Screw Supports for Machine-Tools, of which the following description, in connec tion with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts in each of the several views.

In the use of metal working machines such as planers and boring mills of the larger sizes the feed screws and shafts for moving the tool holders and saddles on the cross rail require to be of considerable length. Since these shafts and screws have hitherto been supported only at their ends as required to leave the intermediate portions thereof free for the engagement of the nuts and powertransmitting pinions therewith, a difliculty has arisen from the tendency to sag of the intermediate unsupported portions of these screws and shafts which has a tendency to set up somewhat of a wab'bly movement in these members that seriously interferes with their normal operative functions. The principal object of the present invention is to provide means engaging the intermediate portion of the screws and shafts in question to support them in true alinement, said. means having provision for automatic disengagement and shifting out of the way of the nuts or other transmitting elements as the tool saddle passes the intermediate portion of the screws and where the said supporting means are engaged therewith. The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will more fully appear from the following detailed description, and the distinctive features of novelty will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a partial end view of a planer equipped with my invention, the cross rail being shown in front elevation;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged partial vertical section, approximately on line 22 of Fig. 3 showing particularly the operative elements involved in the invention;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged partial transverse section through the cross railand showing the operative instrumentalities of the invention;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail section Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 30, 1921.

Serial No. 346,065.

showing the device of the invention as applied to a feed screw; and

Fig. 5 is a similar sectional detail illustrating the device of the invention applied to a feed shaft.

10 indicates the table of a machine tool such as a planer,-mounted for movement as usual on ways 11 and having associated therewith usual upright columns 12, 13 at the sides thereof, these columns having a bridging connection 14: at their tops which serves as a mounting for the feed driving motor 16 and the other driving connections and instrumentalities. The cross rail 17 is mounted for vertical movement and adjustment as usual on the columns 12, 13 and it is illustratively shown in the present instance as equipped with two tool saddles 18, 19, though this is to be understood as merely illustrative. The saddles 18, 19 are actuated by feed screws 20, 21 respectively which are mounted at their ends in the opposite ends of the cross rail as usual and having associated therewith the power transmitting shafts 22, 23, 24. Of these shafts the larger shaft 22 has connections as presently described to operate the tool holders 25, 26 for their vertical movement, while the smaller shafts 23, 24 are adapted and connected to control the feed and rapid traverse movements of the saddles and tools. These shafts as well as the screws 20, 21 are supported and journaled at their ends in the respective ends of the cross rail and the devices of the present invention are adapted and designed to support the intermediate portions of these shafts and, the screws against the sagging tendency that would otherwise obtain by reason of the unsupported weight of the middle portions thereof. The supporting devices for all of the shafts and screws are of a generally similar type and of a character adapted to be disengaged from and moved away from the screw or shaft supported thereby to permit the movement past the support, of the nut or pinion which is mounted in and moves with the saddle in its traverse on the cross rail. Referring first to the two feed screws 20, 21, the support in this case for each of these screws consists in a bracket member 27 pivoted in the cross rail at 28 and having a forward arcuate projection 27 that is adapted to support the screw from underneath. The bracket 27 has I tail piece 27 extending to the other side of the pivot from the rest 2'7 and adapted to seat against a backingface of the cross rail so as to limit the inward movement of the rest 27 and prevent it from bearing with undue friction against the screw or from; pressing it too far upward under the action of the spring as now to be described. The bracket 27 is engaged by the head 29 of a presser pin 29 which is acted on by a stout compression spring 30 housed in a socket 31 of the cross rail, the force of this spring being such as to substantially counterbalance the weight of the intermediate portions of the screw and to hold it in alinement. Suitable provision is made for adjusting the compression of the spring 30, and also of the like springs of the other supports to be later described. This is accomplished, as shown, by means of a threaded backing bolt 15 for such spring which may be turned up to bring the spring under the required degree of compression. 32 indicates the nuts projecting inward from the saddles and engaged with the respective screws. These nuts have projections 32 which engage with plates 33 carried by the brackets 27 and having beveled ends 33 which project some little distance at each side of the bracket 27 whereby as the nut 32 approaches the supporting bracket 27, said bracket is pressed back away from the screw to aflford clearance for the passage of the nut, it being noted that the plate 33 is relatively close to the pivot 28 so'that a corn-- paratively rapid swinging movement will be imparted to the rest portion 27 of the bracket suflicient to swing it away to afford the requisite clearance for the nut. In the case of the shaft 22 it is requisite that the bracket support 34 corresponding to the bracket 27 be swung away far enough to afford clearance for the passage of the bevel pinion 35 with its elongated sleeve 35" journaled in an inward projection 36 of the saddle. For this purpose the projection 36 has fixed thereto aplate 37 extending at each side thereof and which is engaged by a plate 38 with beveled ends 38 which are carried by and project at each side of the bracket 34 similarly as the plate 33. The bracket is engaged by a presser bolt 39 acted on by a stout compression spring 40 housed in the cross rail in like manner as already described with reference to the bolts 29 and springs 30, and a tail piece 41 is likewise provided to limit the inward swinging movement of the rest support 34. The smaller shafts 23, 24 which are oscillated in stead of being rotated have a somewhat modified provision for intermediate support embodying however the same general principles. Referring to the shaft 23 this is engaged by an intermediate support 42 pivoted to the cross rail at 43 and having a tall piece 44 engaging a stop 45 to limit the inward movement thereof, this support be- .ing engaged by a presser bolt 46 acted on by compression spring 47 vertically mounted in the crossrail. The support 42 in this case is shown as formed with check pieces at each side thereof presenting beveled edges 48 which are engaged by ledges 49 which are carried on bearingsbO associated with the bevel pinion 51 that is slidably keyed on the shaft 23 to transmit the rocking control movement thereto. The shaft 24 is engaged by a support 52 pivoted in the crossrail at 53 with a tail piece 54 and acted on by a presser bolt under the influence of a compression spring 56 housed in the crossrail similarly as already described. This support bears a plate 57 equipped with beveled extremities 57 projecting at each side thereof and which are engageable by a plate 58 mounted on the bearing projection 59 of the pinion (30 that is slidably keyed on the shaft 24 and serves to operate the same. Thus the support 52 will be swung downward out of operative engagement with the shaft 24 and to afford clearance for the passage of the mounting 59 of the pinion 60 by the engagement of an end of the plate 58 with one of the inclined projections 57 of the plate 57. The pinion 60 serves to trans 'mit oscillatory movement to the shaft 24 in like manner as the pinion 51 operates the shaft 23, these pinions as well as the pinions 35 being carried along with the saddle and slidably keyed on their respective shafts. It will be understood that the pinions 35, there being one of them in each saddle and both slidably keyed on the shaft 22, serve as transmitting elements in'the connections for operating the tool slides 25, 26 in the respective saddles. It is to be noted that the problem of providing an intermediate support that is automatically tripped out of the way on the passage of the saddle, is similar in each of the locations disclosed and requires only detailed changes for application either to screw shafts such as the shafts 20 and 21 or continuous rotating shafts such as the shaft 22, or like shafts such as the shafts 23, 24. lVhere the term shaft is used in the appended claims unless otherwise stated it is to be understood as referring to and defining either a screw shaft or a rotating shaft, or an oscillating shaft without restriction. The present improvement is therefore to be understood in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being had to the appended claims to indicate the scope of the invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: j

1. A machine tool, comprising a cross rail, a tool holding saddle movably mounted thereon, a shaft operatively engaged with said saddle andjournaled at its ends in said cross rail, and an intermediate support for said shaft equipped for clearance with respect thereto on the passage of the saddle.

2. A machine tool, comprising a cross rail, a saddle movably mounted thereon, a shaft extending the length of said rail and journaled at its ends therein, a tool carrier movably mounted on said saddle and operatively engaged by said shaft, and an intermediate support for said shaft adapted to be disengaged and cleared therefrom, said tool carrier bearing means for disengaging and clearing said support.

3. A machine tool, comprising a shaft journaled at its two ends, a tool carrier operatively engaged by said shaft and mounted for movement along the length thereof, and an intermediate support for said shaft equipped to be disengaged and cleared therefrom on the passage of said tool carrier.

4. A machine tool, comprising a cross rail, a saddle slidably mounted thereon, a shaft extending the length of said rail and journaled at its ends therein, a member borne by said saddle and operatively engaged with said shaft, and an intermediate support for said shaft mounted for disengagement therefrom, said saddle equipped with means to effect such disengagement and permit said shaft engaging member to pass said intermediate support.

5. A machine tool, comprising a cross rail, a saddle movably mounted thereon, a shaft extending the length of said rail and journaled at its ends therein, an intermediate support for said shaft equipped with means to yieldingly press the same into supporting engagement with said shaft, a shaft engaging element borne by said saddle, and means associated therewith for pressing said support away from said shaft to permit clearance of said element past the same.

6. A planer or the like, comprising a cross rail having a shaft extending the length thereof and journaled at its ends therein, an intermediate support for said shaft equipped with a spring to press the same yieldingly into engagement therewith, a saddle slidably mounted on said rail and bearing a member operatively engaging said shaft, and means associated with said member for pressing said support away from said shaft to permit clearance of said shaft engaging element past the same.

7 A planer or the like, comprising a relatively long cross rail having a shaft extending the length thereof and journaled at its ends therein, an intermediate support for said shaft swingingly mounted and having a spring engaging therewith to press the same normally into supporting relation with said shaft, a saddle slidably mounted on said rail bearing a member operatively engaging said shaft, and means associated with said mem ber for swinging said support away from said shaft against the action of said spring to permit clearance of said shaft engaging member past saidsupport.

8. A planer or the like, comprising a relatively long cross rail, a feed screw and a feed shaft extending the length thereof, each equipped with an intermediate support yieldingly pressed into engagement there with, and a saddle slidably mounted on said cross rail equipped with a pinion engaging said shaft and a nut engaging said screw, and means associated with said pinion and said nut for pressing said supports away from said shaft and said crew to permit clearance of said pinion and said nut respectively past the same.

In testimony-whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ALFRED TROSCH. 

